I have been watching Youtube videos from Snapdragon Life and in one of the old ones Jane explained that her auto-immune condition, and the medication which helps her manage it, mean that she needs to start the day slowly so she lies in bed doing some simple knitting until she feels ready to get up. Ever since I was pregnant with my first child (now aged 50!) I have taken a mug of tea back to bed in the mornings before getting dressed and starting the day and since John died I have read whilst sipping. But the idea of knitting appealed to me. Not a jumper or anything else large and complicated which would need too much concentration and be difficult to handle in bed but a small simple project.
As a child my favourite Aunt and her husband had one of the early Dormobiles and travelled around Europe every Summer in it. On the beds were blankets made of knitted squares in lots of different colours made by Aunty Nan and she always took some yarn and needles with her on those trips and made more squares which she stitched together over winter and gave to charity. I loved the tales of adventure and discovery she told of their trips.
My Dad was a keen beekeeper and over each Summer we went with him on visits organised by the Beekeepers Association to members’ apiaries. One was in a field where a couple kept their bees and spent their summers living in a re-purposed railway guards van. I have no idea if they went ‘home’ when the weather was bad or where they spent their winters! They, too, had blankets of knitted squares on their beds. I loved their spirit of adventure and the idea of living in a small cosy space.
So two couples who, to my young eyes, lived lives of adventure and unconventionality connected by their choice of bedcovering – no wonder I also love blankets made of knitted squares or granny squares! Periodically I have made a few squares when I have wanted to knit but inspiration has been slow to arrive. I have a large collection of small balls of leftover yarn. So for the last few weeks I have been knitting simple 6 inch squares in the morning and have found it a lovely way to start the day. This is my collection, old and new, so far.
Check out the blogs of the other members of the group for more inspiration.
I am effectively housebound today. We have had days and days of rain culminating in a heavy downpour yesterday which resulted in widespread flooding along the river valleys. Looking at a plastic container left out in the garden we have had about 8 inches / 200 mm of rain in the last week or so. I am fine. The stream at the bottom of my garden is very high and very fast but the bank on the opposite side is lower than on mine so if it overflows it goes away from me and also my house is higher up the hill. There is a shallow lake outside the back where water coming off the ground above gets stuck for a bit but so far at least it hasn’t breached the damp course. But the roads are a mess and we are being asked not to drive unless we have to. Gravel and dead leaves have accumulated on the bridge and new potholes have been gouged by the fast flowing water running down and over drains and gullies blocked by fallen leaves. I am staying home where I am safe, warm, dry and I have ample stocks of food even if some more fresh stuff would be welcome. There are many people in many parts of the World who are not so lucky.
In particular, like many of you, I have watched the conflict in Gaza unfold with increasing despair. To put it into context I worked out that the Gaza strip is roughly one fifth the size of Ceredigion or Pembrokeshire and one eighth the size of Carmarthenshire, the 3 counties which surround me. During the recent conflict 50,000 people have been killed including 412 Aid workers and at least a million people have fled their homes. Whilst some of those who have been displaced may now be able to return, most of the places they go back to are piles of rubble. Homes, workplaces, schools, hospitals and much of the infrastructure supplying electricity and water have been destroyed. Whatever the rights and wrongs of the conflict that is a huge number of people in serious need. And most of them will be innocent civilians including children, the sick and the frail. I tried to imagine how we would cope if that happened here, or near you.
I am appalled at how the International community and my own Government have stood by and let it happen with seemingly nothing more than hand wringing. But what can I, an older woman living in remote SW Wales do? Writing to my MP seems to have no effect. Demonstrations are ignored. I have felt powerless.
My son, Hassan, converted to Islam over 30 years ago and shares my concerns. He has spoken out in all the ways he can find to no avail. But together we came up with a plan.
I may not be able to do anything to stop the conflict but I want to help in some small way. So I am knitting. Knitting garments for people who fled with only the clothes on their backs. For people who are sick or injured and unable to get the drugs or operation they need. For babies who were born on the run to exhausted and terrified mothers. For people who are hungry and have no access to food or clean water. Garments that say there are people in the world who care enough to make them a useful gift. Warm clothing is a practical gift for the cold winters. But also a demonstration that I cared enough to put my time and skill into making something for them at a point when the World seemed to have turned away from their distress. And I could ask other kind hearted people to help me by offering their time and skill to make things. So far I have enlisted the help of businesses in a number of local towns who are displaying posters and holding boxes to collect garments. I need to find more but it all takes time and energy so progress is slower than I would like. Once we have accumulated enough for a consignment my son will take over.
His part in all this is to use his wide network of contacts in the Muslim community to find the best way to get the gifts to where they are needed. At the moment the Aid Agencies are focused on food, water and medical supplies and rightly so as they are the most urgent needs. But one day, eventually, other aid can be sent and we hope to be ready with plenty to send.
If by then the only people left alive in Gaza are Israeli military personnel and ‘settlers’ Hassan will consult the Palestinian Authority, through their representatives in London, on the best use of what we have made. There will be refugees who managed to cross the borders and other Palestinians in need in the West Bank. Nothing we make will be wasted.
If you live in Pembrokeshire, Ceredigion or Carmarthenshire can you help me please? If not could you organise something where you are?
By knitting or crocheting any garment in any size / pattern / colour / yarn and taking it to one of the collection points (email me for your nearest) or contacting me to see how we can add it to the collection.
By encouraging others to knit or crochet (I can supply posters as a PDF if that would help)
By collecting what is made (I can have plastic storage boxes delivered to you and collected from you when full)
Going Batty in Wales 